Through the first four weeks of the NFL season the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have looked like one of the better teams in the league sporting a 3-1 record. With wins over the Lions and Sunday’s blowout 33-16 win over the Eagles, things are looking good in Central Florida.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield is playing well for a second consecutive season, and the teammates seem to be enjoying one another.
In fact, Mayfield, the 2018 No. 1 overall pick, has seen a career rebirth since arriving in Tampa, and he’s so comfortable now that he’s even taking subtle jabs at the great Tom Brady.
Baker Mayfield Takes Shots At Tom Brady
Mayfield’s never been one to shy away from speaking his mind. During a recent appearance on the “Casa De Klub” podcast, Mayfield compared his and Brady’s personalities and how it also affects their leadership styles.
“The building was a little bit different with Tom in there,” Mayfield said. “Obviously, playing-wise, Tom is different. He had everybody dialed in, high-strung environment, so I think everybody was pretty stressed out. … They wanted me to come in, be myself, bring the joy back to football, for guys who weren’t having as much fun.”
“You hear some of the stories about if he didn’t like a certain play call and he didn’t like throughout the week and they still call it in the game, there might have a been a throwaway on purpose or throwing it at the running back or receiver’s feet. There were a lot of mind games going on,” he added.
Mayfield’s comments seemed to rub Brady the wrong way, as the legendary seven Super Bowl-winning quarterback took aim at the former Texas Tech walk-on during Sunday’s broadcast of the Bucs/Eagles game.
Brady Comes Out Swinging
In response to Mayfield’s subtle jab, Brady didn’t deny that things around the Buccaneers facility during his time were intense, and he also clarified why it was that way.
Speaking during the broadcast of the Eagles/Bucs game on Sunday, Brady had this to say.
“I thought stressful was not having Super Bowl rings,” Brady said. “There was a mindset of a champion I took to work every day. This wasn’t day care — if I wanted to have fun, I was going to Disneyland with my kids.
“There’s a way to approach this game, and it’s with the right mindset to push each other outside of our comfort zone, and great teammates do that,” he continued.
Brady finished with there are “no apologies” for being ultra competitive at all times.
It’s Brady’s way of saying he only played to championships, and fun was second nature. Brady was so locked in to winning that against his ex-wife Gisele Bündchen’s wishes he allegedly returned from retirement without her consent, which played a huge role in his divorce from the supermodel.
Mayfield Clarifies What He Meant
Following Sunday’s win, Mayfield, who went 30-for-47 for 347 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions, addressed the elephant in the room.
The 2017 Heisman Trophy winner says his comments were misconstrued, and he in no way, shape or form was taking a shot at Brady.
“I think a lot of that got taken out of context, and none of it was personal by any means,” Mayfield said. “It’s just what he demanded of the guys, and that’s the aura of Tom Brady. And that’s what he did to bring a championship here.”
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That competitive spirit that Brady speaks of and Mayfield seemingly took a shot at is exactly why he’s widely considered the GOAT and greatest winner the league has ever seen.
Now let’s see if Mayfield’s style of leadership and play is capable of leading the Buccaneers to a trip to Super Sunday while Brady rakes in $37 million per season to analyze NFL games on Fox.
